Medical container with closure



April 30, 1968 A. HARAUTUNEIAN 3,380,489

MEDICAL CONTAINER WITH CLOSURE 2 Sheets-Sheet l FIG. 2.

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Filed Aug. 26, 1965 lui- A TTORNEY April 30, 1968 A. HARAUTUNEIAN 3,380,489

MEDICAL CONTAINER WITH cLosURE Filed Aug. 26, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet f3 INVENTOR A TTO/VEY United States Patent O 3,380,489 MEDICAL CONTAINER WITH CLOSURE Andrew Harautuneian, Gardena, Calif., assigner to Pharmaseal Laboratories, Glendale, Calif., a corporation of California Filed Aug. 26, 1965, Ser. No. 482,873 2 Claims. (Cl. 141-27) ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE A container for lling a hypodermic syringe with liquid and for holding the syringe at various depths within the container, in which the container has a lid opening surrounded by a flexible skirt with inwardly extending vertical ribs whereby distortion of the skirt portions between the ribs is effected when a tapered barrel of a hypodermic syringe is progressively inserted into the skirt.

This invention pertains to a medical irrigation container with a closure for supporting a syringe at various depths within the container.

Irrigation procedures are very common medical procedures. One type of irrigation procedure, a bladder irrigation, includes injecting an irrigating fluid into the bladder through a urethral catheter and subsequently draining the irrigating fluid into a collecting basin. Usually the irrigating fluid is kept in a graduate container and removed therefrom with either a piston or a bulb syringe for injecting into the catheter. To keep contaminating material out of the graduate container, a closure ts across the top of the container. Through this closure is an opening for the syringe.

One of the main problems in previous graduate containers was the lack of an adequate support for the syringe within the opening in the closure. Syringes, especially piston syringes, have a tapered outer surface which has a smaller cross-sectional area at its forward end and a larger cross-sectional area at its rearward end. If the opening in the closure is sized for the larger end of the syringe, the syringe will drop all the way to the bottom of the graduate container when inserted through the opening. Liquid in the lled container will wet the outer surface of the syringe bar-rel, making it slippery and hard to hold. If the syringe is taken out of the container and turned in a tip-upwardly direction, the liquid can run down the entire length of the syringes outer surface. Trying to use such a wet syringe would be like trying to paint a ceiling with an overly full paint brush. Once the physician or nurse has touched the liquid on the outer surface, this liquid can contaminate the remaining liquid in the container when the syringe is returned to the container. To avoid wetting the syringe, the nurse or physician must manually hold the syringe at a particular depth in the container. If he lets go of the syringe to perform other steps of the catheterization or irrigation procedure, the syringe will drop to the bottom of the container as explained above.

My invention provides a simple andreliable closure which supports a syringe at varying depths within the graduate container. Thus, only the forward tip of the syringe need contact the liquid upon filling or storing the syringe.

Another feature of my invention relates to the graduate container with a closure through which a syringe can extend. The syringe is supported by the container when the syringe and container are packaged ready for use within a collecting basin. This feature will be explained later.

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My invention can perhaps be best understood by reference to the drawings, in which:

FIGURE l is a perspective view of the graduate container with a closure supporting a syringe extending therethrough;

FIGURE 2 is a side view of the closure in section showing the closure in combination with the syringe;

FIGURE 3 is a bottom View of the closure;

FIGURE 4 is a bottom view of the closure similar to FIGURE 3, but showing a syringe in cross-sectional View, in combination with the closure; and

FIGURE 5 is a side elevational View partially cut away of the assembled graduate container, closure, and syringe as it is packaged inside a collecting basin.

FIGURE l shows the assembled graduate container 1, removable closure 2, and syringe 3. The syringe 3 ts through and is longitudinally slideable in an opening 8 in closure 2. Opening 8 is offset from the center of closure 2 and is adjacent a flat edge 13 of the closure which fits along the flat side wall 12 of container 1.

The structure of the closure 2 can best be seen in FIGURES 2, 3, and 4. The closure is comprised of an end wall 16, preferably rectangular in shape, with an opening 8 therethrough for the syringe. Surrounding opening 8 is an integral depending skirt 5 with ribs 6 along an inner surface thereof. These ribs 6 contact the tapered outer surface of syringe 3 and as the syringe moves longitudinally through said opening 8i, these ribs 6 grip the outer surface of the syringe and support it within container 1 at varying depths therein. When supporting the syringe 3 at its smaller forward end, the ribs 6 and skirt 5 are generally in the shape shown in FIGURE 3. As the syringe progresses deeper within the container 1, the ribs 6 move outwardly and flexibly deform the skirt 5 into a shape similar to that shown in FIGURE 4. Thus, the closure 2 supports the syringe 3 at various depths within container 1 and the syringe can be left there while the nurse or physician performs other aspects of the irrigating procedure.

Container 1 has an open mouth at one end and a closed bottom at an opposite end. To insure a close tight t of closure 2 over said mouth, the closure has an outer flange 7 integral with and projecting from the periphery of end wall 16.

FIGURE 5 shows the graduate container 1, closure 2, and syringe 3 assembled ready for use and packaged in the collection basin 10. When the container 1 lies on its flat side wall 12 the syringe 3 lies along and is supported at its tip end by at side wall 12. Thus, the syringe is secure for shipping and is not free to bang against the collecting basin and damage either the basin or the syringe. The syringe is supported axially within opening 8 by skirt 5. Because the opening is eccentrically disposed in closure 2 adjacent one edge, the forward end of the syringe is not cantilevered but lies against a wall of graduate container 1. Therefore, the syringe cannot sag and distort opening 8 and skirt 5 over long periods of storage.

The graduate container 1 and closure 2 are made of a thermoplastic material such as polypropylene, polyethylene, or polystyrene.

In describing my invention I have used specific examples for illustrative purposes. It is understood that persons skilled in the art can make certain modifications to these specific examples without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention.

I claim:

1. An assembly for use in medical procedures or the like whereby fluids will be maintained in a sterile con- 3 dition and can be readily and expeditiously measured and dispensed, comprising in combination:

a container having an upper edge and including measuring indicia extending from said upper edge for readily ascertaining quantities of uid to be removed therefrom;

a thermoplastic closure having a top wall and means on the peripheral edge for removably and sealingly engaging the upper edge of said container,

said closure including a transverse opening having a relatively narrow, thin and exible skirt bordering said opening and extending axially a short distance therealong,

said skirt including a plurality of axially extending ribs, circumferentially spaced about said opening and extending radially thereinto; and syringe for removing measured quantities of liquid from said container, said syringe having an elongated, rigid barrel having a forward `and rearward end, the outer surface of said barrel tapering uniormly from said rear end toward said forward end and having a transverse cross section at said forward end generally greater than the transverse dimension between opposed inner rib portions on 25 said skirt whereby the syringe barrel can be manually positioned at any selected depth into said container with the tapered portion thereof being progressively and grippingly engaged by deforming said iiexible skirt between said ribs as the barrel is inserted into said skirt.

2. The structure as claimed in claim 1 in which said skirt depends downwardly from said top wall for minimizing physical contact therewith and preventing contamination of a Huid in said container.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,966,986 1/1961 Jones 206-43 X 3,072,120 1/1963 Sharp et al. 12S-215 959,779 5/1910 Mills 21S-73 X 985,598 2/1911 Jeanson 215-73 X 1,818,574 8/1931 Newman 220-42 X 3,237,624 3/1966` linkens et al. 128-275 FOREIGN PATENTS 569,785 11/1957 Italy.

LAVERNE D. GEIGER, Prima/'y Examiner.

EDWARD I. EARLS, Assistant Examiner. 

